I still can't get over the scooters, so this blog will mainly be about them, then I'll try not mention them again. They're like a school of fish, moving as one, parting to go around pedestrians, cars and other scooters, then reforming. Although the traffic looks chaotic, I've come to realise it's an organised chaos and the drivers are very skilled and considerate of each other.

Some of the interesting things I saw strapped on to scooters today were a front single car seat, ladders, building materials, two kitchen chairs, a stack of flattened cartons about a metre and a half high, produce and a two huge suitcases between two people. I also saw a couple of tiny babies, maybe two or three months old in the arms of their mothers as their fathers drove. A couple of toddlers even managed to sleep with their heads resting on the handbars!

One of the scooters was really old and delapidated and was held together with wire and fence paling type timber. No worries riding and talking on your mobile, but if you want to be safe, just stop to the side of the lane and take your call. Hungry? Eat up, don't let that stop you riding your scooter.

I'm not sure why there are zebra crossing on the road because stopping at them isn't even an option for the traffic...the vehicles just dodge around the pedestrians and keep going. I learnt very quickly to pick a thinning in the traffic, take a breath, then walk; don't hesitate or you're likely to get hit, just keep walking, they'll go around you!

The traffic lights have count down timers on them for each of the colours so the traffic know how long they have until the light changes colour. So everyone can be ready to move when the light goes green, rather than waiting for the vehicle in front of them to move, although if the vehicle doesn't move they just toot and go round them. Brisbane City Council would have made better use of the funds they spent on the pedestrian crossing timers if they'd have installed these instead.

I caught a taxi into the centre of Ho Chi Minh City, AUD3.75 for a fifteen minute ride. My plan was just to wander around and take in the sights, sounds and smells. The taxi dropped me near Notre Dame Cathedral and the Central Post Office. I had a quick look through the souvenir shops around the post office but managed not to spend any money.

I saw three couples having wedding photos taken, but I'm not sure if it might have just been a photo shot, as although the brides wore very beautiful dresses they all had jandle type sandles on. The other thing that made me think it might have been a photo shoot was at one point the brides were sitting in the gutter getting their hair and make-up retouched!

I walked down to the river and had a delicious salted lemon drink in a cafe as I watched the long flat boats going up and down the river. It was then back to the hotel for a quick nap, then a walk around the streets near the hotel.

So far, I've found everything to be soo cheap. For lunch I had a very tasty Pad Thai (I know, I know, but it's what I felt like) and a can of Coca Cola for AUD5.75. I say Coca Cola because the waiter initially didn't know what I wanted when I said Coke until I pointed to it.

Anyway to take advantage of the great prices I've decided to eat in the hotel tonight as they have a seasfood buffet for only AUD27.50! I plan to eat out for the rest of the trip, but how can I pass up seafood at that price.

Although I didn't do a lot, I feel rested and ready for the tour to begin in earnst tomorrow.

UPDATE: I asked Loi about the masks and he said it's not to protect the riders from the car fumes, it's to keep their skin fair...they like to have white looking skin. This also expalins why so many of the local people wear long sleeves, and the women also wear gloves and stockings in such hot weather.